Christmas Hand-Print Art, an Easy and Beautiful Christmas Dessert, and Some Santa Alerts!

Ladies, I cannot believe it is only 5 more sleeps until Christmas. FIVE MORE SLEEPS. My word this year has flown by. And the month? Wasn’t it Thanksgiving just yesterday?

Well, today is about all things festive. We’re talking Christmas hand-print art AND a Christmas recipe, and I even have a handful of Santa Alerts at the end. I’ve started posting this same post every year, because every year at this time I get tons of questions about the art and the dessert.

Please enjoy this festive little post….

CHRISTMAS HAND-PRINT ART

Let’s start out with my favorite Christmas decorations in our home, the hand-print art that our family has made together over the years.

Making these canvases is definitely one of my very favorite traditions. We started with the Christmas tree when Carter was 3, and we’ve obviously done several since. He loves doing them, and I love thinking about him having these when he has his own family. Chris and I got in on the fun a couple of times when he was younger to make the pieces even more special. This is a pic from several years ago.  Look at that sweet baby face!

And here’s 2 years ago! The baby Jesus is what we added last year, and now it’s one of my favorites. At 14, he wasn’t really into the handprint art anymore, but he was willing to paint a canvas because he knows these canvases are my very favorite Christmas decorations to pull out each year. He’s very sweet to keep humoring me.

When he was little, Carter would do the hand or footprints, and then I would finish painting the canvases. The baby Jesus in the manger was all Carter.  I showed him an inspiration picture I’d found on Pinterest, and he ran with it.

Here’s a straight on shot of all of them for you to get a good look!

I basically just search “hand-print art” on Pinterest and then use the images I find as inspiration. Most of our canvases are all paint, but the Santa face and the snowmen family also incorporate scrapbook paper that I added with Mod Podge. The Christmas tree is all of Carter’s 3-year old little hands on top of each other, and the Christmas lights are his fingerprints! The snowman family is all of our feet (with scrapbook paper scarves and hats), and the red birds are mine and Carter’s hands.

You can pick up canvases at a local craft store (I get mine at Hobby Lobby), or you can order canvases of varying sizes HERE (most can be delivered today or tomorrow)! We just use regular ol’ acrylic paint, and we hang them up with these handy dandy velcro strips, which are totally easy to use and don’t leave any residue behind.

Here are the proud artists a couple of Christmas Eves ago with their baby Jesus masterpieces.

And here’s a picture of sweet Carter several years ago. My foot is Mary, Chris’s foot is Joseph, and Carter’s foot is the angel. Carter’s hand-prints are also the animals.

If you have little ones, I really encourage you to start this tradition with your kiddos. Not only will you have sweet memories of making the canvases together, but they will bring you tremendous joy every single year when you pull them out.

 

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CHRISTMAS DESSERT/APPETIZER

Each and every year, one of my favorite traditions is attending the girl’s Christmas party that Shay hosts. Several years ago, the theme was Ugly Christmas Sweaters, we all brought appetizers, and I won the recipe contest!

Click HERE for the recipe. If you can even call it that. You layer 3 items: Softened cream cheese, caramel, and Heath pieces (without chocolate). I bought the caramel sauce in a tub by the apples in the produce section, and I bought the Heath pieces already chopped up like that in the baking aisle (by the chocolate chips).

I piled up the layers in a pretty pie plate, placed the plate on a wooden platter, and surrounded it with red and green apples. A big shout out to Jill (one of my high school besties) who gave me the recipe. She said it was always a crowd pleaser, and boy was she right. Love you, Jill!

You can find some pretty pie plates (with fast delivery) HERE and a super similar wooden board (that arrive tomorrow) HERE. You can have everything you need to make the presentation for this beautiful dessert in plenty of time for Christmas day or Christmas Eve.

 

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And Some Santa Alerts…

I’ve talked about this blanket many times, but I’m talking about it again today because it really is a great gift idea for basically anybody on your list. It’s a Barefoot Dreams dupe, and it’s only $20! The Barefoot Dreams blanket is $180, and I really feel like this one is every bit as good. It launders beautifully and is so warm and cozy. It also comes in beige, a brown stripe, a grey stripe, and a red.

$20 throw

Check out the reviews on this neck and back massager! It’s got over 20,000 5 star reviews!

You can target your neck and shoulders or your back depending on where you place it, and you can control the pressure based upon how you position your arms.

neck and back massager

This limited-edition Drybar set features three best-seller hair care products that will help you achieve a smooth, shiny blowout at home! It’s a $235 VALUE, but right now it’s ON SALE for ONLY $108.50!

Set includes:

– The Half Shot Small Round Blow-Dryer Brush: a blow dryer brush that combines the hot air of a blow-dryer with the structure of a small round brush, to create a smooth, shiny blowout with defined waves and curls in one quick, simple step

– Hold Me Hair Clips (2 count): hair clips that make sectioning and styling strands a breeze

– Prep Rally Prime & Prep Detangler (5 oz.): a spray that detangles, preps and protects damp hair from heat up to 450ºF

– Travel-size Triple Sec 3-in-1 Finishing Spray (1.6 oz.): a spray that provides instant texture, volume and body

– Travel-size Detox Original Dry Shampoo (1.4 oz.): a dry shampoo that will refresh and extend your blowout for days

– Travel-size Final Call Frizz & Static Control Mist (1.7 oz.): a spray that creates an invisible shield to help provide long-lasting humidity and static resistance, fight frizz and tame fly-aways

Drybar blow out set

This tunic sweatshirt is one of my newest favorite finds from Amazon. I have it in this color, and I ordered it in the brown too. I ended up not loving the brown, so I returned it and now the light grey is on its way to me. It’s the perfect length for leggings, and y’all know I love the quarter zip stand up collar. It’s cozy and oh so cute. I wear a medium.

tunic sweatshirt

I’ve talked about this stain treater many times before, but I’m SO PUMPED that they now carry it in this large spray bottle. I’ve always purchased it in the small set of 3 little bottles, so I really am thrilled that they now have this option. I’m telling you, it gets out EVERYTHING. Seriously, everything.

stain treater

This Elemis set includes the collagen cleansing balm, the energizing marine cleanser, the dynamic resurfacing facial wash, and the rose cleansing balm. 4 of their most popular products are packaged together in this great little set.

Elemis skincare set

These men’s slippers will arrive in a timely manner and have thousands of 5 star reviews. Slippers are always a good idea.

I already talked about some magnetic tiles from another retailer, but these magnet tiles are from Amazon which makes them super accessible. We’re talking hours and hours of independent play, people!

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That’s all for today, y’all! See you back here on Friday with our 2023 Christmas Card!

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